The Cape Verdean goalkeeper, known as “Vozinha”, proved that age is just a number by making seven saves in a stellar performance against Spain, stopping every shot on goal and becoming the oldest player in World Cup history.
The World Cup is a place where unlikely heroes are born, and in the case of Vozinha, whose real name is Josimar Dias, life will never be the same. The Cape Verde goalkeeper hit 50,000 followers on his Instagram account ahead of the team’s opening round game against Spain, Up to 11.5 million and countingAs of this writing. That’s because Dias has captured the world’s attention by proving that athletes can break records even after the age of 40.
Who is Vozinha and why is he trending around the world?
The nickname, “Vozinha” was given to Dias by her grandparents in her childhood and roughly translates to “little grandmother” in Portuguese. But there is nothing weak about a footballer reaching football’s biggest stage. Having played for teams in Angola, Moldova, Portugal, Cyprus and Slovakia, Dias was already a respected player, earning his second-highest number of international appearances with the Cape Verde national team, which is also his birthplace.
Dias, who is 40 years old and 6-feet-2-inches tall, He decided to use Vojinha as his professional name to distinguish himself from another goalkeeper named Josimar. “I said, ‘I’m not going to wear Josimer II on the shirt’,” He had told in a previous interview. “If everyone in Cape Verde knew me as Vozinha, I would be like that.”
Vozinha’s historic performance against Spain explained
Dias’s story of making World Cup history at the age of 40 is a reminder that we can all still strive to reach our potential. Actually, personal records are not reserved for youth. Spain were one of the tournament favorites but held Atalanta to a 0–0 draw thanks to seven saves from Vozinha. Cape Verde was one of the smallest nations to compete at the 2026 World Cup able to secure their first World Cup points Thanks for the great team efforts.
Commenting on the terrible turn of events via Instagram, Vozinha said; “A dream come true! It is an indescribable honor to represent Cape Verde on the biggest stage of world football. Speechless… only pride, gratitude and responsibility.”
Cape Verde’s next World Cup match is against Uruguay on June 21.
To follow Vojinha on Instagram, Click here.
